Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC Sells 5,338 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC reduced its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 9.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 54,139 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,338 shares during the quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $5,699,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 237.4% during the third quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC now owns 307 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the period. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 302.3% during the third quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 354 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 266 shares during the period. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. United Financial Planning Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Wealth Watch Advisors INC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on MRK shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, February 13th. Zacks Research upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Barclays started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, February 20th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price target for the company. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $127.59.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $120.86 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $298.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.26. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.31 and a 52 week high of $125.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $117.99 and a 200 day moving average of $103.67.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.19 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 44.57%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.72 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, CFO Caroline Litchfield sold 41,997 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.61, for a total transaction of $5,023,261.17. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 90,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,787,865.12. This represents a 31.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 37,685 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.92, for a total value of $4,556,870.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 160,174 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,368,240.08. The trade was a 19.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc is a global biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery, development, manufacture and marketing of prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies and animal health products. Its portfolio spans multiple therapeutic areas with a particular emphasis on oncology, vaccines and infectious disease, as well as therapies for metabolic and chronic conditions. Among its well-known products are the cancer immunotherapy Keytruda (pembrolizumab) and the human papillomavirus vaccine Gardasil; the company also markets a range of medicines and vaccines for veterinary use through Merck Animal Health.

Founded in the late 19th century as the U.S.